2013 Tour de France Stages 6-7

Stage 6:

I know the picture above isn't actually of the stage, but I thought this was the most beautiful picture of the day. Simon Gerrans "passed" the Yellow Jersey on to his Orica-GreenEdge teammate Daryl Impey, and in doing this Impey became the first African, or South African to be more specific, to ever wear the Yellow Jersey. Impey now has a 3 second lead over Edvald Boasson Hagen and 5 second lead over Gerrans.

Andre Greipel was the winner of the stage. He has led the peloton over the intermediate sprints for most of the stages this Tour, but today he took his first win of the 2013 Tour de France. He beat Peter Sagan, Marcel Kittel, and Mark Cavendish respectively.

I was sad to see that Nacer Bouhanni had to abandon during this stage. He got caught up in a crash at the end of Stage 5, and couldn't make it to the finish of Stage 6. This is the first Tour de France for the 22 year old, who is quickly becoming a contender in the mass sprints.

Stage 7: 

Apparently, even World Champions have tight leashes on. This morning, and article came out about Philippe Gilbert not being allowed to try to get in a breakaway and win this stage, which is suited for a rider like him. Although the article isn't in English, Google translate helped me get the gist of it. The team's decision is to keep Evans safe and all team members around him. This is a race for Evans and no one is to go on their own (Sporza.be). Haven't we seen this before? Oh, right...in last year's Tour de France with Mark Cavendish on Team Sky. He wasn't allowed to sprint for himself, it was all about protecting Wiggins.

More came out today about Frank Schleck's release from Radioshack Leopard Trek. He had been training with them even during his suspension, but yet the team still released him. His own country, Luxembourg, believes that Frank didn't intentionally take this diuretic, and even the UCI admitted that the suspension had nothing to do with doping. Yet, the team still released him. Frank is hoping he can find another team before the Vuelta, although with it being mid-season, that may be difficult. His brother Andy even came out and said, "I will not ride in another team with Frank" (CyclingWeekly, and Sporten.tv2.dk with help of Google Translate).

But anyway, back to Stage 7. Jens Voigt was part of a 6-man attack very early into the stage, but the break only got about 10" ahead before being caught. Then Voigt attacked again, this time with Blel Kadri, and that became the break of the day. Unfortunately, as the two broke away, a crash happened in the peloton involving several riders. Because of his injuries from a crash two days ago, and now this crash, Christian Vande Velde abandoned. This was to be his last Tour de France before retiring, and it's sad he couldn't make it all the way to Paris.

Voigt and Kadri, who earned the KOM Jersey today, were caught 94km from the finish as the sprint teams kept the pace of the peloton high. The problem with that was some of the sprinters fell off the back with the mountains; Andre Greipel, Mark Cavendish, and Marcel Kittel all lost sprint points today to intermediate sprint and eventual stage winner Peter Sagan.

After the intermediate sprint, Jan Bakelants make an attack, which ended up giving him Most Aggressive Rider for the stage. He was quickly joined by Cyril Gautier and Juan Jose Oroz. However, their lead of just over a minute was cut fairly quickly when Daryl Impey's Yellow Jersey was threatened. This breakaway was caught just after the 3km flag.

And as I already said, the winner of the Stage 7 was Peter Sagan, and Daryl Impey stays in Yellow for another day.

2013 Tour de France Stages 4-5

Here is an brief summary of stages 4 and 5 of the 2013 Tour de France:

Stage 4:

This stage was a team time trial. As one of my Twitter-friends said, "A team TT is a perfect blend of teamwork, sport, and art"(c/o @Beal88). I couldn't have said it better myself.

As soon as Cannondale started their TTT, Ted King was dropped. Because of his injuries from the Stage 1 crash, he couldn't hold on to the fast-pace of his teammates. However, unlike a normal stage, the cut-off time is not known until the last team crossed the finish line. Unfortunately, 7 seconds was all it took for Ted King to be outside the time limit.

Going into the TTT, there were two teams that most people thought would win: Team Sky (dominators of last year's Tour de France) and Omega Pharma-Quickstep (TT World Champions). However, it was in fact Orica-GreenEdge that took the win, placing Simon Gerrans in the Yellow Jersey.

As much as I would have loved Jan Bakelants to remain in Yellow some more, with only 1" separating him and a bunch of other riders, I knew Radioshack Leopard Trek could not hold the lead. They aren't exactly a team known for time trials.

Stage 5:

All I really need to say is that this was Mark Cavendish's comeback stage! After getting caught up in a crash in Stage 1, and then fighting two mountainous stages, this was the first chance that we actually were able to see Cavendish sprint to the finish. Not to mention, he is also recovering from bronchitis! He beat Edvald Boassan Hagen and Peter Sagan, respectively, while most of the peloton was held up in the last 200m because of a crash.

As you can see from the sprint photo above, Cavendish, third from right, had the most aerodynamic position for speed! I think it's going to be a showdown between Sagan and Cavendish for the Green Jersey, although Sagan is up by 35 points as of right now. We'll have to wait and see what the road to Paris brings.

It seems to me that Sagan and Cavendish are only contesting the finish line, as Andre Greipel has won all of the intermediate sprints.

2013 Tour de France Stages 1-3

While I don't feel like writing out (or copying) a long blog post, I will update you on what's been going on thus far in the Tour. I'll do a picture for each of the three stages and write a very short summary about them. If you want more details, please visit CyclingNews.com.

Stage 1 - June 29th 2013

How is this to kick off the 100th edition of the Tour de France: the Orica-GreenEdge bus gets stuck under the finish line banner. The finish line was then moved to 3km back when the peloton was 15km away. It was then moved AGAIN to the actual finish line when the bus got cleared in time. With all the confusion, there was a tremendous amount of crashes. In fact, two of the best sprinters, Mark Cavendish and Peter Sagan hit the ground, and it was Marcel Kittel who won the stage, and who wore the first yellow jersey. 

While riders were indeed hurt, they all finished the stage, and the finishing times were neutralized because all the events. All of the riders started stage 2.

Stage 2 - June 30th 2013

Although there were no bus crashes today, the brutal mountains hit the peloton hard. It's not usually on the second stage that riders get isolated and dropped from the main group. However, the stage played into Radioshack Leopard Trek's plan. Maybe Jan Bakelants isn't RSLT's GC contender, but he won the stage, and is now sitting 1" ahead of 92 riders. He looks pretty happy to be in Yellow. Let's hope RSLT can defend it.

Stage 3 - July 1st 2013

Today we had our first 2 DNFs, Yoann Bagot, who got food poisioning, and Andrey Kashechkin. Even with all the crashes on Stage 1, we've only just now started seeing DNFs. 

Today's sprint finish showed the world that Peter Sagan can be beat, when Simon Gerrans crossed the finish line a split second ahead. However, the consolation prize for Sagan was the Green Jersey. He was finally able to secure more sprint point than Kittel. 

I am wondering what Sagan is growing on his face though. It's not that I don't like it, I mean it does make him look older, but I just don't feel that it fits him.

...maybe in a few more days, I'll bring you up to speed again. But for now, you have to deal with my very random blog postings.

2012 Skoda TdL Stage 4 and Dauphine Prologue

The Skoda-Tour de Luxembourg ended with Jakob Fuglsang 1st overall, and RadioShack Nissan Trek the overall team winner! Frank Schleck was 3rd overall, and Maxime Monfort finished 8th overall. I'd say that Johan Bruyneel should be quite proud of his team.

However, the prologue for the Criterium du Dauphine is a different story. Andy Schleck's came in 102nd in the Individual Time Trial. Then, of course, Schleck had a few words to say about his team manager and how Bruyneel has handled team issues by talking to the press:

June 3, Stage 4: Mersch - Luxembourg 153.5km

Roelandts bests Swift in Luxembourg finale

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/skoda-tour-de-luxembourg-2012/stage-4/results)

Jurgen Roelandts (Lotto Belisol) raised his arms in victory for the first time since the 2008 Circuit Franco-Belge after soloing away from his breakaway companions in the final stage of the Tour of Luxembourg today.

Jakob Fuglsang gave RadioShack-Nissan its first stage race win of the season, coming tenth on the stage and holding onto his two second lead over stage 3 winner Wout Poels (Vacansoleil-DCM), with teammate Frank Schleck taking third overall.

"Luxembourg is my second home so to win the national tour of Luxembourg is important to the team but also to me,” said Fuglsang. “Especially after the difficult spring I had with bad luck and injuries. It’s nice to make a comeback like this. It was the right decision for me to not start the Giro d’Italia and give my knee more time to heal. Now I have this victory and I am very, very happy. The team was riding very strong and I have to thank them.

"The team dedicated themselves to winning, and I really have to thank them all," Fuglsang said. "We had such a strong team here. Working together on all five stages made this possible and I’m so happy it worked out for us.”

The weather on the final stage was so bad that a third of the field abandoned and officials neutralized the general classification at the start of the final circuits with 47km left to race.

"I think the organization made the right decision by ending the GC battle at that point," Fuglsang said. "There was a real risk of crashes and everyone was nervous to stay upright."

Heavy rains pounded the riders as they set out for the final 158km stage from Mersch, but it was no matter to Roelandts, who escaped early into the stage with three companions: Tom Stamsnijder (Argos-Shimano), Damien Gaudin (Europcar) and Jimmy Casper (FDJ-Big Mat). The former Belgian champion claimed the three mountain primes that were on offer, and then rode away from his companions in the final 10km to claim the stage win.

The three escapees were caught by the chasing peloton, from which Ben Swift (Sky) took the sprint ahead of teammate Davide Appollonio and Kristof Goddaert (AG2R).

(Picture from: http://www.radioshacknissantrek.com/gallery/tour-luxembourg-stage-4)

Stage 4 Results

#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result
1	Jurgen Roelandts (Bel) Lotto Belisol Team	2:39:58
2	Ben Swift (GBr) Sky Procycling	0:00:25
3	Davide Appollonio (Ita) Sky Procycling
4	Kristof Goddaert (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale
5	Wouter Poels (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
6	Laurens De Vreese (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
7	Koen De Kort (Ned) Argos-Shimano
8	Eliot Lietaer (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
9	Dirk Bellemakers (Ned) Landbouwkrediet-Euphony
10	Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Radioshack-Nissan

 

Overall Results

1	Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Radioshack-Nissan	17:08:40
2	Wouter Poels (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team	0:00:02
3	Frank Schleck (Lux) Radioshack-Nissan	0:00:05
4	Jonathan Hivert (Fra) Saur - Sojasun	0:00:20
5	Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Argos-Shimano	0:00:24
6	Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) Cofidis, Le Credit En Ligne	0:00:25
7	Sébastien Delfosse (Bel) Landbouwkrediet-Euphony	0:00:28
8	Maxime Monfort (Bel) Radioshack-Nissan	0:00:29
9	Bob Jungels (Lux) Luxembourg
10	Martin Elmiger (Swi) AG2R La Mondiale	0:00:32

June 3, Prologue - (ITT): Grenoble 5.7km

Durbridge wins Criterium du Dauphine prologue in Grenoble

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/criterium-du-dauphine-2012/prologue-itt/results)

Australian rider Luke Durbridge (Orica-GreenEdge) sped to victory in the 5.7km time trial prologue to the 2012 Criterium du Dauphine, holding off a spirited effort from pre-race favourite and defending champion Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky), who was the last man to ride.

Durbridge took the lead from Astana's Andriy Grivko and held onto it for over 90 minutes. Wiggins pushed hard as the wind increased and in the end was only a second down on Durbridge's winning time of 6:38:52.

The prologue has set the race up nicely, with plenty of big names in the top ten. Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Cadel Evans (BMC) and Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge) are all in there too.

Conditions definitely favoured the early starters in Grenoble, with the flat course winding through the streets of the city in the foot of the French Alps. Calm and dry conditions deteriorated slightly as the day wore on, with a light shower coming in the middle of the stage and the winding picking up significantly towards the end of the stage. With some tight bends dotted around the course, it wasn’t for the faint-hearted.

It was hardly a surprise, therefore, that half of the eventual top ten set off within the first half an hour of racing. These five included Durbridge, who posted the best time of the three Australians in the top ten.

“I’m speechless,” the 21-year-old said after watching Wiggins narrowly fail to beat his time. “I was lucky with the wind and the rain and it could have gone either way. Sometimes you just need some luck. Wearing the yellow jersey at the Dauphine? I’ll take that. It’s going to take a while for it to sink in.”

Wiggins was happy with the outcome. Despite his narrow defeat he has put himself in an excellent position for the remainder of the race, which begins in earnest tomorrow with a 187km stage featuring six categorised climbs.

"I'm happy enough to finish second but it's about the whole week. I couldn't have asked for better today," Wiggins said.

"It's always the same with prologues. With riders going three hours apart there's always different conditions. The wind changed massively today. Some guys had disadvantages on the course elsewhere at the start and also advantages.
“I'm just pleased it stayed dry really because it's never nice riding a prologue in the rain. It was perfect. I stayed safe and I'm where I want to be at the moment and I'm just trying to enjoy it."

Results

#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result
1	Luke Durbridge (Aus) Orica GreenEdge	0:06:38
2	Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling	0:00:01
3	Andriy Grivko (Ukr) Astana Pro Team	0:00:03
4	Carlos Barredo (Spa) Rabobank Cycling Team
5	Tony Martin (Ger) Omega Pharma-Quick Step	0:00:05
6	Simon Gerrans (Aus) Orica GreenEdge
7	Paul Martens (Ger) Rabobank Cycling Team
8	Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Omega Pharma-Quick Step	0:00:06
9	Cadel Evans (Aus) Bmc Racing Team
10	Andrey Amador (CRc) Movistar Team	0:00:07

 

Andy Schleck has a dig at Bruyneel at Dauphiné prologue

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/andy-schleck-has-a-dig-at-bruyneel-at-dauphine-prologue)

Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad has reported that RadioShack-Nissan rider Andy Schleck spoke out in frustration at team manager Johan Bruyneel's use of the media in recent weeks at today's Critérium du Dauphiné prologue.

Bruyneel has been outspoken in his criticism of Schleck and his brother Frank since the latter withdrew from the Giro d'Italia during stage 15 with a injuries to his shoulder and neck following a crash. Bruyneel implied publicly that the injuries weren't bad enough to warrant a withdrawal from the race and then later criticised the brothers from Luxembourg for a lack of leadership this season.

He also stated that neither rider, who both finished on the podium at last year's Tour de France, are certain to make it to the start line for this year's race in Bruges later this month. He subsequently stated that he was only using the press as a motivating tool.

"Personally, if I was a manager I wouldn't try to solve problems with my riders through the press," Schleck is quoted in the newspaper as saying. "I would discuss them internally. Maybe Bruyneel was being rushed by the team sponsors, who might be getting impatient."

Schleck finished in 102nd position at today's prologue, 29 seconds down on winner Luke Durbridge (Orica-GreenEdge).

To Sum Up Milan-San Remo

10 conclusions from Milan-San Remo

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/10-conclusions-from-milan-san-remo)

1. Fabian Cancellara's (RadioShack-Nissan) racing style has skirted the thin line between bravery and folly in the big classics over the past two seasons, and Milan-San Remo was no exception. Once again, he won hearts and minds with his wholehearted attacking, and once again, he found himself thwarted by a cannier rider at the death.

There was something Sisyphean about Cancellara's plunge into San Remo, with Simon Gerrans and Vincenzo Nibali scrambling for his back wheel. Even though he surely knew that his weakness in the sprint would be exposed, he persisted in his labours nonetheless. But was simply attempting to blast riders of the caliber of Gerrans and Nibali off his wheel a glorious failure or an act of arrogance?

Cancellara triumphed at San Remo in 2008 by patiently biding his time before making one decisive attack inside the final 2km. In contrast to that clinical display, on Saturday he seemed to try and bludgeon his way to victory with repeated blows, and the result was rather less tidy.

That said, one can never step in the same river twice, and the circumstances of this year's race were different to four years ago. Once Cancellara made the decision to bridge to Gerrans and Nibali, and once it was apparent that they would not collaborate, he perhaps had little option but to attempt to burn them off his wheel. Besides, had Cancellara held his fire on the Poggio, he may well have been forced to take up the reins of the pursuit behind in any case, such is his lofty reputation.

At the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, the Swiss rider will have tougher terrain at his disposal to make the difference in the finale, although it remains to be seen if he will show his hand as early and as often as he did in 2011.

2. Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge) didn't bat an eyelid when it was put to him in the winner's press conference that his had been a stolen victory, and with good reason. He had a cast-iron alibi in the chase group in the shape of last year's winner Matt Goss, and instead the Australian cleverly maintained the lead group's momentum with a fleeting turn on the front approaching the final kilometre.

Laudable though Cancellara's strength was, cycling would be an altogether poorer spectacle if victories were decided simply by watts produced. Tactical cunning and sheer sangfroid are just as important a part of a classic winner's make up as raw power, as Gerrans demonstrated on Saturday.

3. With Vincenzo Nibali and Peter Sagan in its ranks, Liquigas-Cannondale had two potential race-winners with contrasting styles at its disposal on Saturday, and the team set out its stall in three phases. Their first aim was to shed the peloton of the pure sprinters, and then Nibali was to go on the attack on the Poggio, while Sagan kept his powder dry for the sprint from a reduced group behind.

In the event, Liquigas succeeded in following the playbook but failed to come away with the win. Cavendish was duly shed on Le Manie, and Nibali forced the winning move on the Poggio, while Sagan took the sprint behind for fourth.
Given the ease with which Sagan held off John Degenkolb, it's tempting to suggest that Nibali should not have attacked and Liquigas should simply have ridden to set up Sagan for the sprint. However, after Valerio Agnoli swung off midway up the Poggio, Daniel Oss was the only other Liquigas rider in the front group. Would that have been enough to pull back a rampant Cancallara?

4. Marcel Kittel may be the marquee young German sprint talent at Project 1t4i, but he has some high quality company in the shape of John Degenkolb. The former HTC-Highroad rider enjoyed a fine Milan-San Remo debut. Just 23 years of age and in only his second season at the top level, Degenkolb dealt admirably with the 300km of racing and finished second in the group sprint just behind the winning break. His victor, of course, was the even more precocious Peter Sagan. Expect to see both men back at the business end of La Primavera in the years to come.

5. While the likes of Liquigas-Cannondale were always going to try and make life difficult for Mark Cavendish (Sky), it was a surprise to see the world champion eliminated from contention on Le Manie with over 90km still to race. As ever, there will be much conjecture over the true state of Cavendish's early-season fitness, but given his solid start to life in the rainbow jersey, it may simply be that he endured an off day at the most inopportune time. Certainly, it would be no surprise if he were to make a forceful response at Gent-Wevelgem next weekend – Cavendish is rarely more dangerous than when stung by perceived slights.

6. Bubbling under in the lead-up to Milan-San Remo after early season wins in Australia and Spain, Oscar Freire was quietly fancied by a number of observers to take his fourth win at La Classicissima, and when Katusha led the charge behind Cancellara, it looked as though he would conjure up a big win from nothing all over again. Instead, the chasers fell just shy of making the juncture, while Freire himself had to give best to Sagan, Degenkolb and Pippo Pozzato in the sprint for fourth. In what may be his final season as a professional, one wonders if Freire will manage to work the oracle one more time before his exits the stage.

7. Filippo Pozzato brooked his share of criticism during his final season at Katusha, but the man from Vicenza has carried himself with a renewed verve since he signed with Farnese Vini-Selle Italia ahead of the 2012 season. Training under the watchful gaze of Luca Scinto all winter, Pozzato set himself the target of slugging it out with the big hitters at San Remo, Flanders and Roubaix.

A broken collarbone at the Tour of Qatar threatened to derail his campaign, but remarkably he was back racing within a week of his operation, so desperate was he not to miss out on racing miles ahead of the classics. The gamble looked to have paid dividends on Saturday as he rode to a solid 6th place in San Remo. While it's worth noting that he finished 5th last year before the wheels came off his Katusha career in Belgium, Pozzato seems altogether more assured under Scinto's guidance, and it will be fascinating to see if he can recover his form of 2009 on the cobbles this April.

8. BMC's travails continued at Milan-San Remo, and remarkably the expensively-assembled outfit has yet to pick up a single win in 2012. Their Classicissima challenge was dented early in the week when Thor Hushovd was forced out of the race with illness, and the Norwegian was perhaps always likely to be their best chance of success. Philippe Gilbert, too, was stricken by fever and dental problems in the week before the race, and a crash over the top of the Cipressa ended his challenge before it was possible to draw any real conclusions as to his actual state of form.

Greg Van Avermaet was also a faller and it was left to Alessandro Ballan to keep their end up with an 8th place finish. While there were mitigating circumstances aplenty for their low-key showing on the road to San Remo, the galacticos will be expected to start making a telling impact on races at the very least as the focus switches to the cobbles.

9. Given his twin talents of endurance and speed, it seems almost an aberration that Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) has never triumphed at Milan-San Remo. In fine form at Paris-Nice last week, no less a figure than Michele Bartoli had tipped Boonen for the win on Saturday and the Belgian appeared comfortable throughout. Caught behind a crash on the descent of the Poggio, however, Boonen lost sight of the leaders and his challenge ended. Still, his season is as ever defined by the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, where the signs are he will renew his rivalry with Fabian Cancellara.

10. A 300km classic from Milan to San Remo is perhaps something of an anachronism, a throwback to the early years of organised racing. Certainly, one does not envisage that any new additions to the WorldTour calendar would ever feature such a lengthy point-to-point race. That said, throughout its history, the organisers have often updated the race by tweaking its format slightly, adding the Poggio (1960), Cipressa (1982) and Le Manie (2009).

Change may be afoot again as soon as next year, with rumours of a steeper route to the top of the Cipressa and a finish line closer to the Poggio. The idea to give attackers more of a chance to finish alone, but as has been the case since 1907, it's the riders rather than the route that will be the making of the race.

Milan - San Remo: Gerrans vs. Cancellara

Cancellara pipped at Milan-San Remo

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cancellara-pipped-at-milan-san-remo)

Another classic, another pyrrhic victory for Fabian Cancellara. The RadioShack-Nissan rider made all the running in the final, frantic kilometres of Milan-San Remo on Saturday, but he comes away from the Riviera laden with compliments rather than prizes after he finished second behind Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge).

Second in Milan-San Remo last year, third in the Tour of Flanders, second in Paris-Roubaix and now second again in La Classicissima, Cancellara’s recent run of classics results has been as frustrating as it has been remarkable. From monument to monument, the sequence of events has seemed to follow a set formula: Cancellara wins the strongest man contest but somebody else rides off with the race itself.

On this occasion it was Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) who sparked the winning move when he forged clear on the Poggio with Gerrans for company, but approaching the summit, it was Cancellara who muscled his way to the front and powered the trio down into San Remo.

Such was the intensity of his effort that Gerrans later admitted that he was struggling to keep up as Cancellara accelerated out of the corners that litter the famous descent of the Poggio. Indeed, at times Cancellara seemed to ride as though he were utterly unaware that he had two such high-quality rivals sitting (albeit not always comfortably) on his back wheel.

He eventually waved Gerrans through to take a rather cursory turn on the front in the streets of San Remo, but Cancellara again took up sole responsibility in the final kilometre, fearful of the chase group behind. A Milan-San Remo victor must know how to gamble; perhaps mindful of his weakness in the sprint, Cancellara opted to play the percentages and ensure at least a podium place for his troubles.

“In the end I took the risk,” he said afterwards. “I don’t have eyes in the back of my head. I felt that they were coming behind quickly, so for that reason I said to myself: ‘all in.’

“In the end, I risked it, but I still took a second place at Milan-San Remo, which is of great value. It’s a great race. I wanted to do well today, I had it in mind to try something on the Poggio today and make the difference. In the end I did what I could. The others were on my wheel.

Gerrans gave me two turns. I had to launch the sprint too as they were coming up behind us.”

The chasers included the precocious Peter Sagan, who comfortably took the sprint for fourth place. His presence behind meant that Cancellara could understood why Sagan’s teammate Nibali did not contribute to the lead group’s efforts.

“I spoke with Vincenzo. He said it was clear that he couldn’t pull as he had Sagan behind. I knew that in theory Vincenzo and Gerrans are quicker than me, but after 300km things can be different, so I gave my all.”

Ultimately, however, there was an almost disarming familiarity about the way Gerrans came around Cancellara, and one was reminded of his defeat in Flanders last season. Cancellara admitted that he was running close to empty by the time he reached the Lungomare Italo Calvino.

“I had lactic acid coming out my ears too,” he said with a rueful smile. “If you go from the top of the Poggio to the finish full on, it’s clear that at the end the gas runs out.”

Turning to the cobbles

Cancellara has had more practice in the role of gracious classics runner-up than he could ever have wished for in recent times, and he did his best to put a positive spin on what must have been a bitterly disappointing afternoon. Moral victors have been the subject of some of the richest chapters of cycling lore, but the record books do not note their achievements.

“In the end I’m still going home from Italy with some nice things in my pocket. I won Strade Bianche and the time trial at Tirreno,” Cancellara pointed out, and he now turns his attentions to the northern classics, where his rear wheel will be both a precious commodity and feared sight.

“The second place today will give me a lot of satisfaction and morale and the certainty that I’m going well. That gives me confidence for what is to come.”

Throughout its history, the vanquished at Milan-San Remo have called for additional climbs to be added to the route, and Cancellara wryly joined the chorus as he pondered what might have been.

“It would have been better if there had been another climb,” he said. “The race was fast but in the end it wasn’t hard as there wasn’t a lot of intensity. Everybody knew 300km was a lot, and everybody wanted their legs for the end. I hope that the northern classics will be a little bit more intense so I can make the difference a little bit more.”

Gerrans: I can’t deny Cancellara was the strongest

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/gerrans-i-cant-deny-cancellara-was-the-strongest)

It takes the head and the legs to win bike races, and never was the old adage more pertinent than on the Lungomare Italo Calvino on Saturday afternoon, as Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge) zipped past Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Nissan) to win Milan-San Remo.

It was Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) who sparked the winning break with an attack on the Poggio, but it was Cancellara who grabbed a firm hold of the reins on the descent, and his efforts on the sinuous plunge down into San Remo ensured that the trio stayed just clear of the chasers to divide the spoils among them.

But in an echo of last spring’s monuments, while Cancellara’s show of force produced plenty of shock and awe, the winner’s bouquet went to the rider who best engaged his grey matter in the finale.

Gerrans took two turns on the front. The first, before the top of the Poggio, added momentum to Nibali’s attack. The second, in the streets of San Remo, seemed merely a token effort to appease Cancellara’s signal for help.

“Without question Fabian was the strongest, I can’t deny him that. He was going like a motorbike,” Gerrans admitted in the post-race press conference. “Really, he followed Nibali and myself on the Poggio and then he drove it across the top. He’s one of the best descenders in the peloton and he drove it down the descent. I was losing the wheel coming out of the corners each time.”

Last year, Cancellara famously warned his classics rivals that they would have to fasten their seatbelts such was the ferocity of his attacking. Gerrans and Nibali duly buckled up as the road flattened out over the top of the Poggio, but the Australian already had designs on nudging Cancellara out of the driving seat at the last.

“He was really committed to driving the break to the finish line. I was able to give him one short turn with a little over a kilometre to go and then he came past me again like a motorbike,” Gerrans said. “I was confident the break was going to go but to the finish and I knew what I had to do to finish the hard work off and just come past him in the final.”

A stolen win?

One journalist wondered aloud if Gerrans had stolen Cancellara’s victory, but the frenetic finale of a La Classicissima was hardly the place to ponder such moral dilemmas. In any case, with teammate and defending champion Matt Goss sitting in the chase group behind, Gerrans had a strong alibi, as did Nibali, whose teammate Sagan won the sprint for fourth.

“That was my role in the team. We had the defending champion in Matt Goss and if it came back for a sprint, Goss was going to be the main guy. My position was to follow the breakaways,” Gerrans said. “Obviously I wasn’t as strong as Fabian, I’d be the first to admit that. But it’s not always the strongest guy who wins the race. You have to play a little smart and be there.”

Gerrans explained that he and Goss had scarcely spoken during the race, but such was the simplicity of the GreenEdge tactic that there was no need. While Goss kept his powder dry behind, Gerrans was assigned to follow the moves on the Cipressa and Poggio.

“I was quite surprised because we didn’t race the Cipressa or the beginning of the Poggio at a fast pace. So I thought there was a good chance the group would come back together if there were attacks. I was surprised we were able to go to the finish line, but that was courtesy of Fabian.”

Gerrans may not be the most prolific of winners, but there is little argument about the quality of a palmares that includes stage victories in each of the three grand tours.

“I’m pretty good at analysing the situation and making the most of what I have,” Gerrans said by way of explanation. “I know I’m not the biggest engine in the peloton, but I have some all round abilities and every now and then I get to race for the win and I try and make the most of that situation.”

And what of Cancellara? Did the Swiss locomotive overestimate its own capacity?

“He was very much racing for the victory, but maybe he underestimated me a bit in the final,” Gerrans said. “By driving and doing so much work on the front of the group, he was committed to get the break to the final but he also thought he had enough to get the win.”

No UCI points for Movistar from Valverde

Valverde's success will not benefit Movistar

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/valverdes-success-will-not-benefit-movistar)

Alejandro Valverde may have completed the sporting ban which was the consequence of a protracted Operacion Puerto case, but the Spaniard's punishment is not yet concluded: the UCI confirmed to Cyclingnews that none of his points will count toward his team's sporting criteria - the ranking which is used by the UCI in determining which teams will be in the following year's WorldTour. Indeed, none of his points will count for the next two seasons.

Valverde is currently sitting in second in the WorldTour rankings after coming in as the runner-up to GreenEdge's Simon Gerrans at the Tour Down Under, and while his results will add to the team's tally for the WorldTour rankings, it will not help his Movistar team when it comes time for the UCI to figure out who stays and who goes in the 2013 WorldTour. The UCI ranks the teams by rider points accumulated, team points and other criteria such as ethical and financial merits, with only the top 15 teams earning automatic consideration for the next WorldTour season.

The UCI took the decision to disqualify riders who are returning from bans from scoring points toward the team rankings for two years following their return from a anti-doping rule violation. The rule was ratified by the Pro Cycling Council in Copenhagen last autumn.

Earlier in 2011, the idea was presented to the PCC by former Credit Agricole manager Roger Legeay, and was accepted for consideration by the UCI's management committee. Teams association (AIGCP) president Jonathan Vaughters confirmed that he voted in favour of the rule on behalf of the teams in the Copenhagen meeting. "It was supported by the majority of the teams. Its a good rule, I think," Vaughters said.

World Tour Standings as of 1/22/12

I thought about doing something special for my 200th blog post, but I couldn't think of anything. My mind is still beat from my 13 day work week. So, I decided two posts in one day was the way to go. This morning I posted the results from the Santos Tour Down Under, and now I wanted to post the updated WorldTour rankings:

Gerrans, RadioShack-Nissan top first WorldTour rankings

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/gerrans-radioshack-nissan-top-first-worldtour-rankings)


Following his overall victory in the Santos Tour Down Under, GreenEdge's Simon Gerrans became the first leader of the UCI's WorldTour individual rankings.

Gerrans leads runner-up Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) by 19 points, with fellow podium finisher Tiago Machado (RadioShack-Nissan) in third, 15 further points back.

Thanks to the presence of both Machado and Jan Bakelants in the top five on general classification, the RadioShack-Nissan team kicked off the season at the top of the team rankings.

The Luxembourg squad leads Movistar by 7 points, with GreenEdge one point behind.

Strong performances by the home riders, who placed five riders in the points - Gerrans, Sky's Michael Rogers, Rabobank's Michael Matthews and Mark Renshaw and GreenEdge's Robbie McEwen - put Australia atop the nations rankings ahead of Spain and Portugal.

The WorldTour now takes a six-week hiatus before resuming at Paris-Nice on March 4.

WorldTour standings as of January 22, 2012

1	Simon Gerrans (Aus) Greenedge Cycling Team	106	pts
2	Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team	87
3	Tiago Machado (Por) Radioshack-Nissan	72
4	Michael Rogers (Aus) Sky Procycling	61
5	Jan Bakelants (Bel) Radioshack-Nissan	40
6	Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling	34
7	Javier Moreno Bazan (Spa) Movistar Team	20
8	André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Belisol Team	18
9	Michael Matthews (Aus) Rabobank Cycling Team	15
10	Yauheni Hutarovich (Blr) FDJ-Big Mat	7
11	Oscar Freire Gomez (Spa) Katusha Team	6
12	Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Lampre - ISD	6
13	Mark Renshaw (Aus) Rabobank Cycling Team	5
14	Eduard Vorganov (Rus) Katusha Team	4
15	Gerald Ciolek (Ger) Omega Pharma-Quickstep	4
16	Daniele Bennati (Ita) Radioshack-Nissan	3
17	Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Movistar Team	1
18	Fabio Sabatini (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale	1
19	Robbie McEwen (Aus) Greenedge Cycling Team	1

Teams

1	Radioshack-Nissan	115	pts
2	Movistar Team	108
3	Greenedge Cycling Team	107
4	Sky Procycling	95
5	Rabobank Cycling Team	20
6	Lotto Belisol Team	18
7	Katusha Team	10
8	FDJ-Big Mat	7
9	Lampre - ISD	6
10	Omega Pharma-Quickstep	4
11	Liquigas-Cannondale	1

Nations

1	Australia	188	pts
2	Spain	114
3	Portugal	72
4	Belgium	40
5	Norway	34
6	Germany	22
7	Italy	10
8	Belarus	7
9	Russia	4

Santos Tour Down Under Results

Gerrans crowned Tour Down Under champion in Adelaide

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/tourdownunder/stage-6/results_)

Andre Greipel (Lotto-Belisol) has taken his third Tour Down Under victory, and his fourth win for the week after a text book sprint down King William Road. Mark Renshaw (Rabobank) tried to compete but was unable to come by the German's wheel on the uphill sprint. Italian Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre-ISD) was a close third.

The bunch finish was nearly spoiled however by Cameron Meyer (GreenEdge) who made a bold solo move with a little over a lap to go. Meyer's overall hopes had been dashed yesterday when he missed the select front group on the first time up Old Willunga Hill. The field would not be denied, particulalry Andre Greipel's Lotto Belisol team who put the him in a perfect position - the German finishing off with ease.

Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge) meanwhile did all he needed to, successfully finishing in the bunch to take out his second overall title after his career defining 2006 triumph while riding for the French AG2R-Prévoyance team.

For his GreenEdge team, it was another tick in the box after their recent successes in the Mars Cycling Australia Road National Championships and the Jayco Bay Classic Series in Victoria.

The team set out to take the overall title, and despite not winning a stage, can be wholly satisified with a truly team performance that gives them the early lead in the prestigious WorldTour.

"It’s just fantastic," said a clearly excited Gerrans at the finish.

"I can’t thank my team mates enough. I was pleasantly surprised when I was told I had the lead [yesterday]. It’s such a fantastic victory for GreenEDGE. We couldn’t ask for a more perfect way to start the season."

"It’s an even sweeter victory than my first one here in 2006. It gives me the opportunity to thank for the first time the Ryan family and Shayne Bannan for putting this team together. It couldn’t be a better start for us."

Stage winner Greipel was similalry appreciative of his Lotto-Belisol team who have shown definitively to be the best organised when it comes to a bunch dash.

"What can I say," said Greipel. "Lotto-Belisol has just been amazing in leading me out to my third win of the week. It looks easy but it’s not. I was nowhere in the front on GC this year but I’m happy with the sprint finishes."

Greipel's stage win was not enough to take out the points classificaiton however. His three stage wins were cancelled out by his absences on Willunga and in Tanunda, ultimately costing him vital points that Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky) was able to bank. The Norwegian would have liked a win but was happy nonetheless.

"It’s an early start to the season and to be on top form now is difficult.I’m happy to be on okay form but I can still get better."

UniSA-Australia had plenty of reason to celebrate, taking out the King of the Moutains for the second year running as well as cleaning up with Rohan Dennis who also took out best young rider.

How it unfolded

With the overall tied on time, and Gerrans a clear leader on countback, GreenEdge were happy to see a sizeable break form very early in the 20 lap circuit race in Adelaide.

It included Bernard Sulzberger, Jay McCarthy (UniSA-Australia), Luke Durbridge, Cameron Meyer (GreenEdge), Martijn Maaskant (Garmin-Barracuda), Adam Hansen (Lotto-Belisol), Sergey Lagutin (Vacansoleil-DCM), Mathew Hayman (Sky), Gorka Izagirre (Euskatel-Euskadi), Matteo Trentin (Omega Pharma-Quickstep), Greg Van Avermaet (BMC), Davide Cimolai (Lampre-ISD), Jens Voigt (Radioshack-Nissan), William Bonnet (FDJ-BigMat), Sergio Paulinho and Jonas Jorgensen (Saxo Bank).

They built up an advantage of close to 40 seconds before Rabobank who had missed the move came to the front to bring them back.

With the group within reach Michael Matthews soloed across the final 10 second gap, enough to encourage the peloton that the break should come back into the fold.

With the first intermediate sprint looming and dangerous seconds on the line, GreenEdge sent Luke Durbridge up the road again and he was joined by Davide Cimolai. Cimolai took out the sprint from Durbridge who didn't contest. Jack Bauer (Garmin-Barracuda) jumped out of the peloton to take third.

Once again the speed of the peloton after the prime was enough to nullify the break, and it was all together once more.

Bakelants makes his charge

Jan Bakelants (Radioshack-Nissan), who before today sat seventh on GC, used the lull to make a bid for the bonus second on offer at the second sprint.  He needed just two seconds to get in front of Edvald Boasson Hagen and picked up all three on offer, ahead of Cameron Meyer (GreenEdge) who managed to bridge to Bakelants solo.

Shortly thereafter Romain Sicard (Euskatel-Euskadi) also bridged to make it a trio of strong riders at the front. As the laps ticked by, and the gap failed to reduce Bakelants was becoming a real threat to the overall lead of Simon Gerrans. He was just 16 seconds behind Gerrans at this stage and with the 40 second advantage the break held was virtual leader.

Justifiably he got very little help from Sicard as the race entered the closing kilometres, with Meyer playing ticket collector on the back.

The bunch was having none of it however and with Lotto-Belisol, Lampre-ISD and Liquigas-Cannondale ramping things up for their sprinters the gap rapidly fell away.

Inside 6 kilometres to go and Bakelants decided to raise the white flag, happy enough with his sixth overall. Meyer meanwhile wanted the stage win. He went alone and entered the final 4 kilometre lap with a small advantage.

Though Meyer's fight was admirable, nothing would deny the bunch on the fast city circuit, and with half a lap to go it was all together for a bunch sprint. Lotto-Belisol best placed their man, and it was Andre Greipel who took the sprint from Renshaw and Petacchi.

Gerrans crossed the line safely in the main field to take the overall.

Stage 6 Results:

1	André Greipel (Ger) Lotto-Belisol	1:56:48
2	Mark Renshaw (Aus) Rabobank
3	Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Lampre - ISD
4	Yauheni Hutarovich (Blr) FDJ - BigMat
5	Jose Joaquin Rojas (Spa) Movistar
6	Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling
7	Romain Feillu (Fra) Vacansoleil -DCM
8	Jonathan Cantwell (Aus) Team Saxo Bank
9	Fabio Sabatini (Ita) Liquigas - Cannondale
10	Manuel Belletti (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale

Overall Results:

1	Simon Gerrans (Aus) GreenEDGE	20:46:12
2	Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar
3	Tiago Machado (Por) RadioShack-Nissan	0:00:08
4	Michael Rogers (Aus) Sky Procycling	0:00:14
5	Rohan Dennis (Aus) UNI SA - Australia
6	Jan Bakelants (Bel) RadioShack-Nissan	0:00:16
7	Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling	0:00:18
8	Javier Moreno (Spa) Movistar	0:00:23
9	Michael Matthews (Aus) Rabobank	0:00:29
10	Eduard Vorganov (Rus) Katusha	0:00:32

Mars Cycling Australia Road National Championships 2012

Congrats to new Australia Champion Simon Gerrans:

January 8, Elite men's road race: Buninyong 163.2km

Gerrans crowned Australian Road Champion in last lap thriller at Buninyong

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/mars-cycling-australia-road-national-championships-2012/elite-mens-road-race/results)

Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge) as one of Australia's best cyclists over the last decade has been rewarded for his exploits, winning Sunday's Australian Road National Championship from Matthew Lloyd (Lampre-ISD) and Richie Porte (Sky).

"This is one of my proudest moments in cycling," Gerrans said having completed the 163.2 kilometre race in a time of 4:07:38.

For Gerrans, who won the national under 23 title in 2002 and was the bronze medallist in the 2011 edition of the championships, today's result was just reward given the 31-year-old also has the honour of being the only Australian to have won a stage in all of the Grand Tours.

"This is well and truly up there," the Victorian explained when asked where the win sat in comparison to some of his grand achievements. "It's such a proud moment to be Australian Champion and I'm just going to wear this jersey with pride for the next 12 months."

Lloyd, silver medallist on the day and a former winner of the title, was most appreciative of the result.
"I was mega-stoked for Simon and Richie because it's a race that's very special and that jersey, once you've got it you can never take it away," he explained. "It's beautiful to see."

The win marked the first for his new team with the road race an important goal for the UCI WorldTour neophytes as they embark on the 2012 season – the pressure always on GreenEdge to ensure one of their key men would wear the green and gold bands at the biggest races in Europe.

With 16 men lining up for the team at Buninyong, GreenEdge definitely had an advantage in numbers where their opponents did not but Gerrans admitted that with their head start came extra pressure "to try and win the race and really utilise the guys that we had."

Bronze medallist Porte paid compliments to GreenEdge, but also spoke of the hard work by new teammates at Sky, Mathew Hayman, Michael Rogers and Chris Sutton who were all still in the mix on the final lap.

"We had quality, not quantity," Porte explained. "Mathew Hayman just kept coming back and Chris Sutton was probably the fastest guy at the finish and then Mick as well. It's such a good team but hats off to GreenEdge. They used their numbers well and it's Simon who deserves it the most... In all respects."

A closed race to foreign riders in 2012, Gerrans said that the decision taken by race organiser John Craven had been vindicated by the standard of racing on show, but did not deny that it helped the chances of GreenEdge.

"It worked in our favour at GreenEdge because we've got so many Aussies," he admitted. "If foreigners were allowed to race it might have boosted the teams like Sky and Rabobank.

"I think we've got a worthy enough field to have a world class national championships with just Australians so there's no need for foreigners in the race anymore."

In arguably the best racing ever witnessed at the national championships, the race did not have a clear winner until the last of the gruelling 16 laps of the 10.1 kilometre Buninyong course, which had seen the field decimated from the opening circuit where GreenEdge immediately went on the attack through defending champion Jack Bobridge and Luke Durbridge.

For some time, it appeared as though Gerrans' teammate Cameron Meyer would be the man for the win with the 23-year-old producing a mammoth solo effort with around 100 kilometres of racing already completed, staying away until appearing to bonk inside the final three laps. Gerrans said that the race became "an even playing field" at that point.

"We had the same amount of guys in the front as a lot of other teams and it was pretty much every team for themselves and we lost our advantage in numbers," he explained. "It was a lot of hard work to win the race."

At the end of 15 laps, 23 riders were still in contention for the title and Gerrans, who had gone into the race as the GreenEdge's protected man, was the first man to launch an attack on the start of the climb with Lloyd following his wheel. Porte decided that he too should make a run for the finish soon after, and time trialled across the gap to eventually reach the lead pair with a kilometre to go.

Seeing the Sky kit in the distance, Gerrans actually thought it was Porte's teammate who was also in the chase group, Chris Sutton coming after he and Lloyd.

"I was doing a lot of looking over my shoulder and I thought that CJ was doing a heck of a strong ride but it turns out it was a time trialist in Richie," said Gerrans.

Both Lloyd and Porte joked post-race about the ‘sprint' for the minor placings, while Gerrans was always confident in victory given his opponents.

"You will never see me sprint faster in my life," laughed Lloyd.

How it unfolded

An all-Australian field rolled out for the first time in Buninyong for the elite men’s road race, and with the presence of GreenEdge, the countries’ first top tier team, it was always going to be an historic day.

The riders seemed to realise this as well, because almost seconds after start gun went, ably done by a colonial musketman, a group of three riders jumped off the front of the bunch.

They were Luke Durbridge, Jack Bobridge (both GreenEdge) and Nathan Haas (Garmin-Cervelo).

Their gap hovered over the 30-second mark, and for nearly two laps they appeared to be starting something that wouldn’t come back. Two junior would time trial champions and one of the hottest prospects in Australian cycling at the moment in Haas.

But with the chase behind in earnest, the peloton seemed unhappy with the trio ahead, and by the start of lap 3 things were once more together.

The next move was instigated by none other than Stuart O’Grady. The 2003 national champion pulled away mid way through the third lap with his former Leopard teammate Will Clarke (Champion System).

The two worked well together before being joined by Pat Shaw (Genesys) to form another strong group of three. Shaw, a native of Ballarat, was super motivated to make a mark and he did not disappoint.

70 kilometres in and the peloton had well and truly shattered behind. The frenetic pace meant that three chase groups of around 20 riders followed the lead trio who still held a small margin at the front.

Shortly after the leaders of Shaw, O’Grady, and Clarke were joined by several other riders including Cameron Meyer, Durbridge, Bernard Sulzberger, Wes Sulzberger, Richie Porte, Jai Crawford, Heinrich Haussler, Simon Gerrans and many more.

Again GreenEdge was well represented, and seemed content to tap out the tempo at the front. Leigh Howard was prevalent, as was Durbridge with both being used as the team quite obviously as sacrificial lambs for the more favoured riders on the team.

One of the pre-race favourites Matt Goss wasn’t in the selection ahead, and after too-and-froing in the chase decided to call it quits.

As the laps ticked down there were attacks after attacks. The break seemed reluctant to form, but finally one did including Clarke and Shaw again, Matt Wilson, Wes Sulzberger, Bernard Sulzberger, Durbridge, Cameron Meyer, and Mark Renshaw – who was climbing out of his skin.

This move looked to be the winning one. Durbridge, W. Sulzberger and Wilson went to the front and hammered the group, while Meyer sat on looking very ominous. Their advantage never ballooned out however.

Sensing that the time was right to try something different, Cameron Meyer and Matt Wilson jumped away on the grippier part of the climb, and quickly built an advantage of a minute to the chase.

Behind things were getting interesting as well with a larger chase – made from the remainder of the peloton forming more than 30 riders, bearing down on the leaders.

Wilson disappeared from the front when Meyer’s pace was too much, leaving the time trial champion to do just that.

Meyer’s gap went to over two minutes. But he was facing a long road to the finish if he was to win. He looked smooth though, and realizing the danger Haussler decided to try and cross the gap alone.

Getting a free tow from Haussler was Durbridge who seemed to be everywhere, and on a super day.

Disaster struck for Meyer just when he seemed like he was going to extend his advantage to something insurmountable. Put it down to youthful exuberance, but he failed to eat and bonked big time with around 35 kilometres to go.

Painfully for Haussler, the same lap he caught Meyer, the peloton caught him, and things were once again all together.

O’Grady, who was clearly on a flyer of a day, went almost as soon as the catch happened. This time it was Mathew Hayman who linked up with him. The duo worked well together, but again the move was brought back.

It was into the final 18 kilometres now, and for the remaining climbers that signaled the time to launch an all-out assault.

Matthew Lloyd appeared for the first time in the race when he launced a big move, and he was quickly followed by Simon Gerrans, and Richie Porte.

Chris Sutton was surprising plenty of people as he bridged, and Bernard Sulzberger joined them to make a group of five.

As the final lap loomed, things came back together once more, and just as they did Lloyd, Gerrans and Porte went again. This time it was the big one and with the small peloton cramping like there was tomorrow, the three disappeared.

On the false flat Lloyd went again with Gerrans leaving Porte just behind. The Sky rider was forced to go into full time trial mode to get back in contact, which he did and with two to go they were a group of three guaranteed a medal, but still fighting for the one that mattered.

It came down to a sprint, and unsurprisingly; it was Gerrans who triumphed over his compatriots, by far the fastest finisher of the three. It was his first national title, and a great end to the weekend for his new team GreenEdge, who picked up the women’s title as well yesterday.

Results

Full Results

#	Rider Name (Country) Team	Result
1	Simon Gerrans (Vic)	4:07:38
2	Matthew Lloyd (Vic)	0:00:02
3	Richie Porte (Tas)
4	Adam Hansen (QLD)	0:01:05
5	William Clarke (Tas)	0:01:09
6	Steele Von Hoff (Vic)	0:01:11
7	Christopher Sutton (NSW)
8	Baden Cooke (Vic)
9	Anthony Giacoppo (WA)
10	Bernard Sulzberger (Tas)